3 brands that did not make it Brands that have not succeeded in creating such a strong heritage that they have established themselves
They have dressed great sports champions, but this has not been enough to keep them in the small circle of the brands that count. Despite the fact that their logos have been pinned on the shirts worn by football legends, accompanying them in their sporting exploits, they have not managed to create such a strong heritage as to impose themselves on the Italian and then European scene. Brands that, despite the great proclamations, exceptional testimonials and great jerseys, after a few years have vanished into thin air, leaving only a tepid memory. An inevitable cycle, which in Italy is constantly fed by the constellations of amateur, semi-professional clubs and football schools. Indeed, we have seen almost always new brands in Serie A, some taking over from others very slowly, such as Givova who soon took over all the clubs sponsored by Legea. It is impossible not to mention the leading role played by Kappa and Macron, who have replaced Lotto, Erreà and Mass over the years.
Although these brands have slowly disappeared, leaving a huge void, we at nss sports have never completely forgotten Sportika, Warrior and Kronos. Technical sponsors who dressed great clubs and great players and then stopped making football kits for professional clubs.
Sportika
When in 2012 Liverpool chose to leave adidas after only six years many were surprised, but no one could have imagined that the Reds would sign with Warrior, a brand unknown in the world of football. Up until that point, the brand, which specialises in ice hockey and lacrosse, had not yet produced a kit for a professional team and its first contract was with one of Europe's most prestigious teams. The desire to immerse itself in the world of football probably came at the urging of New Balance, which in 2007 had incorporated the Warrior group, perhaps planning its current rise in the world of football itself years before. Today, the William Riley-founded brand plays a major role in football, sponsoring teams such as Porto, Roma and Bilbao, and has been the kit supplier to the Reds for five years, taking over from Warrior.
As we said, it all began in 2012 in the city of the Beatles with a massive £25million bid over six years - a deal that was among the most lucrative in the industry at the time. Warrior decided to play it safe by dusting off the Liver Bird with the letters LFC, a crest used on shirts in the 1970s and 1980s and still present today. The other major change they made to the home kit was to not include any white elements, the first and only time this has happened in Liverpool's history. But Warrior's exploit came in the following season, when in addition to offering unique kits for Liverpool inspired by those created by Umbro in the early 80s, the brand founded by David Morrow surprised everyone by becoming technical supplier of Sevilla.
In those years the Andalusian club was experiencing one of its best sporting moments outside of Europe, so much so that in 2014 it gave Warrior its first important success with the victory in the Europa League. Unfortunately, in his first year in Sevilla, Warrior was unable to replicate what he had done with Liverpool, the brand distorting the first jersey by adding a vertical stripe to the classic white uniform, used by the Andalusians only on rare occasions. The European victory with Sevilla, however, allowed Warrior to make a name for itself, expanding its boundaries even further, arriving in Portugal with Porto and then touching on the dream of dressing Roma, who in those years were undecided whether to continue with the path of self-production or rely on a technical sponsor. But in the very year that Warrior was seeing its popularity, profits and club sponsorship rise, the group decided to take a different route, kick-starting the rise of New Balance, which replaced Warrior the following season.
